1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to travel trailers and, in particular, relates to a chassis for a fifth wheel travel trailer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recreational fifth wheel travel trailers provide individuals with spacious, comfortable and transportable lodging. In particular, a typical fifth wheel travel trailer comprises a housing member having a multi-level interior living space formed therein, a multi-level chassis adapted to support the housing member, and a carriage member having a plurality of wheels interposed between the chassis and a supporting surface so as to enable the trailer to travel on the supporting surface. Furthermore, the typical fifth wheel trailer is adapted to detachably mount to a towing vehicle so that a front end of the trailer extends beyond the load bearing rear wheels of the towing vehicle so as to enable the towing vehicle to essentially act as a fifth wheel.
Since fifth wheel trailers are currently available with lengths as great as forty feet and pop-out sections that provide the housing member with increased width, their interior living spaces are able to resemble that of a nicely appointed home. For example, it is common now for a fifth wheel travel trailer to include a large kitchen, a large bathroom, a large bedroom, and a large living area. Moreover, such trailers typically include multiple water storage tanks for supplying hot and cold water as well as for storing waste water, wiring for distributing electrical power and a central heating/ventilation/air conditioning (HVAC) system for providing desirable environmental conditions within the interior living space.
Thus, the typical fifth wheel travel trailers is often relatively heavy and its mass is often spatially distributed over a relatively large volume. Consequently, the chassis of the trailer is often exposed to relatively large bending moments. However, since typical chassis are often formed with insufficient rigidity, they are often unable to maintain a sufficiently fixed shape in response to spatially distributed gravitational forces exerted on the trailer. Thus, the relatively large strains of the chassis are often transferred to the housing member so as to produce unpleasant noises and so as to inhibit interior items, such as cabinet doors, from operating in a desired manner due to these items being placed in a strained condition.
In other words, the large size and weight of the chassis results in portions of the chassis deforming over continued towing of the vehicle. Typically, a floor structure is built up above the chassis and deformation of the chassis can result in the floor deforming over time. Deformations in the floor can result in uneven flooring and can also result in cabinets and fixtures becoming detached or warped over time. This problem is particularly accentuated by the fact that the modem fifth wheel trailer is often used as a second home and is attempting to closely approximate the level of quality in construction that is found in an actual home. However, the fifth wheel trailer is also designed to be towed which results in vibrations and stresses transmitted to the chassis, the flooring and interior furnishings which can result in the foregoing problems.
The difficulties associated with building a chassis that is sufficiently rigid to inhibit the deformation of the flooring and interior furnishing resulting from towing the trailer is increasingly resulting in prior art chassis designs that are increasingly complicated and involve heavier structural members. However, increasingly complicated chassis designs significantly increase the cost of production of the travel trailer. Moreover, the trend in the industry is to increase the amount of furnishings in the travel trailer at a cost of increasing the weight of the vehicle. Hence, the increases in the weight of the travel trailer resulting from the increase in the weight of the structural components of the chassis can often result in a larger proportion of the travel trailers weight being consumed by the weight for the chassis.
From the foregoing, therefore, it will be appreciated that there is a need for an improved chassis for a travel trailer such as a fifth wheel. In particular, there is a need for the chassis to be relatively rigid so as to reduce strain related noises and so as to reduce the transferring of strain to interior items of the trailer. Furthermore, there is a need for the chassis to be relatively lightweight so as to reduce the weight of the trailer. Moreover, there is a need for the chassis to have a simple design so as to enable the chassis to be fabricated at a relatively low cost.